Bay Area

Faith-Based Group and Affordable Housing Developers Break Ground for Senior Housing in West Oakland

Donald Gilmore, executive director of the Community Housing Development Corporation (CHDC) and Rev. Gerald Agee, founder and pastor of Friendship Christian Church (FCC), recently hosted the groundbreaking of a property at 1904 Adeline St. preparing for a 50-unit affordable housing complex in West Oakland.

Published

2 years ago

July 8, 2024

Oakland Post

The 50-unit Friendship Senior Housing Project plans at 1904 Adeline St. Photo courtesy of Friendship Housing Project.

By Carla Thomas

Donald Gilmore, executive director of the Community Housing Development Corporation (CHDC) and Rev. Gerald Agee, founder and pastor of Friendship Christian Church (FCC) recently hosted the groundbreaking of a property at 1904 Adeline St. preparing for a 50-unit affordable housing complex in West Oakland.

Special guests at the June 6 event featured Senator Nancy Skinner, Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao, Supervisor Keith Carson, along with representatives from Alameda County, the Oakland Housing Authority, and funders.

“In 2017, the community affordable housing developer and our faith-based organizations forged a partnership to collaborate on a common goal: to provide affordable housing to one of our most precious, vulnerable, and underserved populations – the seniors of the West

Oakland community,” said Agee.

Also known as the Friendship Senior Housing project, the affordable housing project is the realization of the vision of CHDC, a regional, Black-led community development corporation, and the Friendship Senior Affordable Housing organizing committee.

Located in the heart of the West Oakland, construction of the project began in the Fall of 2023. The Friendship Senior Housing project will provide housing opportunities in a comfortable, convenient, and affordable contemporary style setting.

“This project represents CHDC’s first faith-based Initiative project to break ground. As well as the first State Tax credit, BIPOC project to be developed in the City of Oakland. The project is situated within one mile of the West Oakland BART Station, and steps away from DeFremery Park, West Oakland Senior Center and West Oakland Library Branch,” said Gilmore.

The Friendship Senior Housing Development will offer 50-units of modern, secure, and convenient living for senior households age 62 and older, earning at or below 50% Area Median Income (AMI).

The four-story, garden-style building provides a variety of unit types ranging from studios to one- bedroom floor plans. The project will include 15 studio units, 34 one-bedroom units, and 1 two-bedroom unit for the onsite resident manager.

Amenities include onsite parking, laundry facilities, elevators, community room with kitchen, computer lab, office space for the onsite manager and resident services staff, and indoor and outdoor common areas to promote social interactions between the residents.

Development and construction of Friendship Senior housing is being made possible through a variety of financial resources, including, the California Tax Credit Allocation Committee & California Debt Limit Allocation Committee, City of Oakland, California Department of Housing and Community Development, Oakland Housing Authority, Alameda County Health Care Services, Citibank, CREA, Department of Toxic Substances Control and Local Initiatives Support Corporation.

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Oakland Post: Week of February 25 – March 3, 2026

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of – February 25 – March 3, 2026

Published

2 days ago

March 1, 2026

Oakland Post

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Chase Oakland Community Center Hosts Alley-Oop Accelerator Building Community and Opportunity for Bay Area Entrepreneurs

Over the past three years, the Alley-Oop Accelerator has helped more than 20 Bay Area businesses grow, connect, and gain meaningful exposure. The program combines hands-on training, mentorship, and community-building to help participants navigate the legal, financial, and marketing challenges of small business ownership.

Published

1 week ago

February 21, 2026

Oakland Post

Bay Area entrepreneurs attend the Alley-Oop Accelerator, a small business incubation program at Chase Oakland Community Center. Photo by Carla Thomas.

By Carla Thomas

The Golden State Warriors and Chase bank hosted the third annual Alley-Oop Accelerator this month, an empowering eight-week program designed to help Bay Area entrepreneurs bring their visions for business to life.

The initiative kicked off on Feb. 12 at Chase’s Oakland Community Center on Broadway Street, welcoming 15 small business owners who joined a growing network of local innovators working to strengthen the region’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.

At its core, the accelerator is designed to create an ecosystem of collaboration, where local entrepreneurs can learn from one another while accessing the resources of a global financial institution.

“This is our third year in a row working with the Golden State Warriors on the Alley-Oop Accelerator,” said Jaime Garcia, executive director of Chase’s Coaching for Impact team for the West Division. “We’ve already had 20-plus businesses graduate from the program, and we have 15 enrolled this year. The biggest thing about the program is really the community that’s built amongst the business owners — plus the exposure they’re able to get through Chase and the Golden State Warriors.”

According to Garcia, several graduates have gone on to receive vendor contracts with the Warriors and have gained broader recognition through collaborations with JPMorgan Chase.

“A lot of what Chase is trying to do,” Garcia added, “is bring businesses together because what they’ve asked for is an ecosystem, a network where they can connect, grow, and thrive organically.”

This year’s Alley-Oop Accelerator reflects that vision through its comprehensive curriculum and emphasis on practical learning. Participants explore the full spectrum of business essentials including financial management, marketing strategy, and legal compliance, while also preparing for real-world experiences such as pop-up market events.

Each entrepreneur benefits from one-on-one mentoring sessions through Chase’s Coaching for Impact program, which provides complimentary, personalized business consulting.

Garcia described the impact this hands-on approach has had on local small business owners. He recalled one candlemaker, who, after participating in the program, was invited to provide candles as gifts at Chase events.

“We were able to help give that business exposure,” he explained. “But then our team also worked with them on how to access capital to buy inventory and manage operations once those orders started coming in. It’s about preparation. When a hiccup happens, are you ready to handle it?”

The Coaching for Impact initiative, which launched in 2020 in just four cities, has since expanded to 46 nationwide.

“Every business is different,” Garcia said. “That’s why personal coaching matters so much. It’s life-changing.”

Participants in the 2026 program will each receive a $2,500 stipend, funding that Garcia said can make an outsized difference. “It’s amazing what some people can do with just $2,500,” he noted. “It sounds small, but it goes a long way when you have a plan for how to use it.”

For Chase and the Warriors, the Alley-Oop Accelerator represents more than an educational initiative, it’s a pathway to empowerment and economic inclusion. The program continues to foster lasting relationships among the entrepreneurs who, as Garcia put it, “build each other up” through shared growth and opportunity.

“Starting a business is never easy, but with the right support, it becomes possible, and even exhilarating,” said Oscar Lopez, the senior business consultant for Chase in Oakland.